2.3.2 Generating an advanced test

This introductory scenario shows an individual user creating a test using advanced options. These options are expected to be more desirable to users who want more control with their test generation. In this scenario, we assume that the user has created multiple questions for the test generator to utilize. Details of question generation are covered in section 2.2..


Figure 24: A blank advanced test dialog.


The Test Name field is a one-line string that will be the name of the test. The Course dropdown box will tell the test generator which course to load the questions from. The total points field specifies the number of total points the user wants the test to have. The Estimated Time Limit field specifies the time limit the user wants the questions to add up to. The Difficulty drop down specifies the average difficulty the user wants the questions to have. The Keywords field tells the generator to only include questions that include that keyword in the question's list.

For the Number of Questions fields, the user specifies the number of questions that they desire for each question type to be generated for the test. The Clear button will clear all the above fields.

When the user pushes the Generate button, the test generator will use the data specified in the above fields to load up the correct question database and include questions for the test that follow the specifications set by the user. The test that is generated will have:

When there are multiple questions to choose from that fit the specifications, the generator will randomly choose the questions from the database.

Figure 25: An advanced test dialog, filled in and generated.


In the loaded question bank, the Included column specifies the exact questions that will be included in the final test. Checked boxes show the question is included; unchecked boxes show questions that are not included.The Author column shows the name of the creator of that question. The Type column shows the type of question it is. The Point Value column shows how many points that question is worth. The Estimated Time column shows the number of minutes the question is supposed to take. The Difficulty column shows how hard the instructor expects the question to be, ranging from one to nine in increasing order of difficulty. The Keywords column shows the keywords associated with that question. The Has Image column shows whether or not that question has an image attached to it. The Created column shows the date the question was added to the database. The Modified column shows the date the question was last editted. The Last Used column shows the date the question was last used in a completed test.

To sort the loaded question bank, click on the column header to sort by that category. Sorting will initially be done from greatest to least, but clicking the sort again will sort from least to greatest.

Figure 26: An advanced test dialog, sorted by difficulty.


In the above example, the user has sorted the loaded question bank by each question's difficulty.

If the user wants to completely regenerate a test, the user simply needs to change some of the fields. In this example, the user has changed number of questions the test generator will include.

Figure 27: An advanced test dialog with less filled in.


After the fields are changed, the user must push the Generate button to tell the test generator to update the loaded question bank. If the user pushes Generate without changing any fields, the test generator will re-generate a test using the same parameters as the shown test.

Figure 28: An advanced test dialog with less filled in, after generate.


If the user only wants to re-generate a single question to still fit the same requirements, the user must highlight the question they want changed and push the Replace button.

Figure 29: An advanced test dialog, about to replace a question.


Once the replace button is pushed, the test generator will search the question bank for a question that can still fit the requirements of the test. The type and point value must remain the same, the difficulty must be within one value, and the time limit must be within 20% of the replaced question's time.

Figure 30: An advanced test dialog, after question is replaced.


Once the user is satisfied with the questions selected, the Complete button is pushed. This brings the user to the manual editting page, shown in section 2.3.3.



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